Our English word “integrity” comes from the Latin root “integritas” – meaning wholeness and completeness. We also get our English words integrated and integer from this same root. When I visited the ancient Roman city of Jerash near Amman, Jordan, I had the chance to tell another centurion story relating to integrity.
In the Roman military tradition, the soldiers would line up for inspection and as the centurion approached each man, the soldier would bang his breastplate with his fist and shout, “Integritas!” which meant, “I am whole. I am complete. And I am prepared for battle…!”
I was first exposed to this history in a speech by General Charles Krulak, then commandant of the US Marine Corps.
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Category: Dynamic of Character